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The brave Belfast children’s hospital worker said she ran to the kitchen, grabbed some scissors and cut the cleaner free before they fled the burning house.

“The smoke wasn't overly bad down the stairs but upstairs it was bad. I was running on adrenaline a wasn't thinking if I was scared or not I was focused on getting everyone out safely.

“We’re just so glad we were there at the right place and time,” she added.

The sisters said the men had been inside ”for about two hours, wrecking the place before leaving her there with the place on fire”. Running on adrenaline, they said they didn't really think about what they had done until afterwards.

“They took her car and her medication that she takes for her heart,” Gemma added.

“Matthew and my cousin Sean Doyle arrived then and tried to keep everything calm ‘til the firemen came. It was absolutely mad. She was in a panic. She couldn’t believe they took her wee car - she only got it as a Christmas present.

“We sat on the road and tried to find her tablets in her bag, and realised they took them too.”